Apparatus for installing concrete piles

ABSTRACT

Process and apparatus for forming a column of material in situ, such as a support pile, sand drain or well point means utilized in building construction. The apparatus includes a funnel-shaped container having a bottom discharge opening. A plow point slightly less in cross-section than the container bottom discharge opening is adapted to be supported in the discharge opening and operable for forming a column bore by impact means imparted to an elongated pusher element. The elongated pusher element is adapted to be telescopically received within the plow point for guiding the plow point during a column forming operation. A column of material is formed in situ by locating the column forming plow point at a desired location on the supporting soil surface, placing the material forming container around the plow point, interconnecting the pusher member with the plow point, filling the supply container with a quantity of material sufficient to fill a column being formed, imparting movement to the plow point means by impact force applied to the pusher member so that the plow point will penetrate the soil, transferring by gravity the column forming material in the container to progressively fill the column bore from the top downward in response to formation of the bore by movement of the plow point means. After the plow point has reached a predetermined depth within the soil, the pusher member is withdrawn from the bore allowing the additional column forming material in the container to flow by gravity into the void created by the pusher member.

United States Patent [1 1 Steding 1 Dec.3,1974

[541 APPARATUS FOR INSTALLING CO RETE FIL [76] Inventor: Jerry A. Steding, 4605 Meadow Valley Dr. NE, Atlanta, Ga. 30342 [22] Filed: Apr. 14, 1972 [21] Appl. No.: 244,118

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 7/1935 Takechi 61/56 X 4/1959 Smith 7/1969 Rusche 3,478,524 11/1969 Hoppe 3,638,433 2/1972 Sherard 6l/53.5 X

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 410,280 5/1934 Great Britain 6l/53.64

Primary Examiner.lacob Shapiro Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Newton, Hopkins 8L Ormsby 57 ABSTRACT Process and apparatus for forming a column of material in situ, such as a support pile, sand drain or well point means utilized in building construction. The apparatus includes a funnel-shaped container having a bottom discharge opening. A plow point slightly less in cross-section than the container bottom discharge opening is adapted to be supported in the discharge opening and operable for forming a column bore by impact means imparted to an elongated pusher element. The elongated pusher element is adapted to be telescopically received within the plow point for guiding the plow point during a column forming operation. A column of material is formed in situ by locating the column forming plow point at a desired location on the supporting soil surface, placing the material forming container around the plow point, interconnecting the pusher member with the plow point, filling the supply container with a quantity of material sufficient to till a column being formed, imparting movement to the plow point means by impact force applied to the pusher member so that the plow point will penetrate the soil, transferring by gravity the column forming material in the container to progressively till the column bore from the top downward in response to formation of the bore by movement of the plow point means. After the plow point has reached a predetermined depth within the soil, the pusher member iswithdrawn from the bore allowing the additional column forming material in the container to flow by gravity into the void created by the pusher member.

1 Claim, 6 Drawing Figures APPARATUS FOR INSTALLING CONCRETE FILES BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION industrial plants, and other similar structures, it is often necessary to drive piling, install well points, install sand drains, or perform soil stabilization. Over the years, foundation piles have been formulated utilizing a small amount of steel in the finishing pile as possible in order to make the pile economically feasible. While success along these lines has been accomplished, the method invariably requires special expensive equipment which places the process out of reach of the individual set up to install standard foundation piles such as pipe piles, wood piles, pre-cast or pre-stressed concrete piles, H- piles, as well as those individuals set up to install well points and sand drains.

In the construction of foundation piles, the prior art processes either require heavy capacity cranes, jacking apparatus or vibratory drivers for removing casing. They also require concrete pumping apparatus to pump the concrete into the piles. Some operations require jetting, digging or drilling operations to obtain the desired results. Even using all of these expensive special pieces of equipment, the presently used processes of pile formation do not insure that a uniform size shaft is actually being obtained in the soil.

Another problem with the prior art pile forming process is that the forming plow point is too short and does notprovide an effective guide to insure a plumb pile. If the forming plow point is not accurately guided, the plow point will be deflected due to varying soil conditions causing the pile forming operation to stray out of plumb.

1n the prior art pile forming operations, the pile forming material isnormally introduced into the pile bore adjacent the plow point means, with the pile forming material being directed upwardly to fill the bore. This requires expensive pumping or jetting apparatus for introducing the pile forming material into the bore. One problem with introducing the pile forming material into the bore adjacent the plow point, is that often the bore walls will collapse.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The above disadvantages have been overcome by the present invention which basically includes a supply container having a bottom discharge opening adapted to surround a plow point and pusher member, the supply container being filled with a quantity of column forming material whereby the pile forming material will flow by gravity into a bore in response to movement of the plow point into the soil by impact forces applied to the pusher member, with the bore being progressively filled from the top downward.

One important feature of the present invention is that the pile forming material being supported in the container and being transferred to the pile bore will develop pressure within the bore to prevent the bore walls from collapsing.

It is, therefore, a primary object of the present invention to provide a process and apparatus capable of forming a controlled shaft in the ground using only the amount of steel necessary for the final application and without the use of special, expensive equipment, such as heavy capacity cranes, jacking apparatus, vibratory drivers and concrete pumping apparatus.

These and other objects and advantages of the details of construction will become apparent after reading the following description of the illustrative embodiments and process of the present invention with reference to the attached drawings wherein like reference numerals have been used to refer to like parts throughout the several figures, and wherein:

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 5 is an elevational cross-sectional view showing a pile forming operation in an advanced stage of operation; and v I FIG. 6 shows a completed pile formed by utilizing the principles of the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE ILLUSTRATIVE EMBODIMENTS Referring now to the drawing, the apparatus required to perform a pile forming operation utilizing the principles of the present invention will be described, followed by the steps of a pile forming operation.

As shown in FIG. 1, a first embodiment of the apparatus used in a pile forming operation is shown and generally represented by the referencenumeral 10. The pile forming apparatus 10 includes a circular hopper 11 having first cylindrical sides 12 adjacent an open top and including downwardly converging funnel-shaped sides 13. Sides 13 are detailed to form a circular bottom discharge opening 14. As shown in FIG. 1, hopper 11 is provided with scale means 15. Scale means 15 is graduated to indicate the amount of column forming material contained within the hopper 11.

As shown in FIG. 1, the pile forming apparatus 10 includes a lead member or plow point generally represented by the reference numeral 20. The lead member or plow point 20 includes a cylindrical pipe section 21 having an axial opening 22. Opening 22 is closed adjacent the bottom end by acircular plate member 23. Plate member 23 is slightly larger in diameter than the diameter of pipe section 21. The diameter of plate member 23 is slightly less than the bottom discharge opening 14 formed in material supplying hopper 11.

The column lead member or plow point 20 is adapted to be driven into the soil surface by an elongated pusher member 30. Pusher member 30 is H-shaped in cross section and includes a circular projection 31 formed adjacent its lower end. Circular projection 31 is complementary to the opening 22 of plow point 20, whereby the circular projection 31 can be telescopically received within opening 22 during a pile forming operation so that the pusher member 30 can aid in guiding the plow point through the soil to insure a plumb pile. Pusher member is provided with scale means 32 graduated in increments to indicate the depth the plow point 20 has advanced in a pile forming operation so that by this information, in conjunction with the graduated scale indicating means on the hopper 11 and by knowing the size of the plow point 20, it can be determined if a uniform amount of fill material necessary to fill the theoretical bore size is being induced into the bore.

Pusher member 30 is adapted to effect penetrating movement of the plow point 20 into the soil by means of a conventional pile driving impact member 40. After the plow point 20 has been advanced to a predetermined depth within the soil, the pusher member 30 is withdrawn from the column bore by means of conventional crane means (not shown) which can be releasably connected to an opening 33 formed adjacent the top of pusher member 30. The H-shaped cross section of pusher member 30 will present a substantially less cross-sectional area than the opening of the column bore being formed by plate 23 so that the pile forming material can flow by gravity from container 11 into the area surrounding the pusher member 30.

As shown in FIG. 2, an alternate form of a pusher member is shown and generally represented by the reference numeral 50. Pusher member 50 is constructed of an elongated tubular element having an axial opening 51 and including a plurality of radial openings 52. Radial openings 52 will permit the pile forming material to flow from a location outwardly of the pusher member 50 to a location within axial opening 51. The lower end of pusher member 50 is complementary to plow point opening 22. The cross-sectional area of pusher member 50 is substantially less than the crosssectional area of the column bore being formed by platemember 23 so that the pile forming material contained within hopper 11 can flow by gravity from the hopper 11 into the area surrounding pusher member 50 and can flow by gravity through radial openings 52 into the axial opening 51.

A pile forming operation utilizing the above described pile forming apparatus is carried out by the following steps:

Step I. The lead member or plow point 20 is placed at a desired location for forming the piles;

Step 2. The supply hopper 11 is then placed over plow point 20 with opening 14 concentrically aligned with plow point plate member 23;

Step 3. Circular portion 31 of pusher 30 is then inserted within plow point opening 22;

Step 4. Hopper 11 is then filled with an amount of fill material such as mortar, soil stabilization liquid, concrete or sand;

Step 5. Impact force is then applied by member to the upper end of pusher 30 to effect penetration of the soil by plow point plate member 23;

Step 6. Impact force is continually applied to pusher member 30 until plow point 20 reaches a predetermined depth in the soil, with the fill material being continually transferred by gravity through opening 14 around the area of pusher 30 so that the fill material progressively fills the column bore formed by plow point 20 from the top downward;

Step 7. After plow point 20 has reached a predetermined depth, pusher member 30 is withdrawn from the bore by conventional crane means attached to opening 33, with the additional fill material contained in hopper 11 being transferred by gravity into the void created by pusher member 30.

In utilizing the tubular pusher member 50, the steps will be carried out in substantially the same manner, with the fill material being continually transferred by gravity through opening l4 progressively downward around pipe 50. When the fill material being transferred through radial openings 52 into the interior of pipe 50 has been completed, pipe 50 is withdrawn from the column bore in the same manner as described above in regard to pusher member 30.

In forming a pile utilizing the principles of the present invention, the fill material contained within hopper 11 will apply pressure to the wall of the bore formed by the plow point 20 to prevent the bore walls from collapsmg.

One important feature of the present invention is that the plow point tubular portion 21 is detailed in length to maintain an interconnecting guiding relationship with pusher members 30, 50.

Guides for the plow point pusher can also be installed in the pile driving leaders holding the power source to maintain additional vertical stability during installation.

If a cased shaft is desired, metal shells may be attached to the plow point and carried into the soil with the plow point.

Dewatering devices such as normally used in the well point systems can be attached to the plow point if the installation is for the purpose of dewatering.

The above described process can also be used in the construction of sheet piling or retaining walls adjacent excavation sites.

It is obvious that any number of shapes of the lead member or plow point'means 20, such as one having a conical tip, or any number of shapes of the pusher members 30, 50 can be utilized. The only requirement is that the cross-sectional area of the pusher members 30, 50 be substantially less than the cross-sectional area 7 of the front end of the plow point member 20. If a pile forming operation is being performed in an unstable soil, additional fill material can be provided within hopper 11 so that additional pressure will be applied to the bore walls to prevent the walls from collapsing.

lt now becomes apparent that the above-described illustrative embodiments of a pile forming process and apparatus are capable of attaining the above-stated objects and advantages. It is obvious that those skilled in the art may make modifications in the details of construction without departing from the spirit of the invention which is to be limited only by the scope of the appended claims.

What is claimed is:

l. Apparatus for use in forming a column of material such as a support pile, sand drain or well point means, in situ, comprising:

a. container means having funnel-shaped sides converging to define a ground-engaging opening adjacent the container bottom, being operable for supporting a quantity of column forming material with said funnel-shaped sides detailed for directing said column forming material by gravity outwardly through said container bottom opening;

b. a column forming plow point means adapted inian elongated pusher means having its lower end closely fitted with said socket portion of said plow point means so that an impact force applied to said pusher means will be transferred to said plow point means for effecting penetration of the soil supporting surface to cause a vertically continuous column bore to be formed in said soil, said pusher means being of cross sectional area substantially less than that of said lower end of the plow point means; and,

d. said container including scale means for progressively indicating the amount of column forming material transferred into a column being formed and said pusher means including a graduated scale to indicate depth of plow point penetration and in conjunction with the scale means on the container to indicate the amount of material transferred into said column bore in response to predetermined increments of movement of said plow point means, whereby it may be determined whether a uniform amount of material necessary to fill the theoretical bore size is being induced into the bore. 

1. Apparatus for use in forming a column of material such as a support pile, sand drain or well point means, in situ, comprising: a. container means having funnel-shaped sides converging to define a ground-engaging opening adjacent the container bottom, being operable for supporting a quantity of column forming material with said funnel-shaped sides detailed for directing said column forming material by gravity outwardly through said container bottom opening; b. a column forming plow point means adapted initially to be located in said container adjacent said bottom opening, said column plow point means having a lower end of a given cross sectional area and an upstanding socket portion of exterior cross section less than that of said lower end and presenting a vertical bore of substantial length adapted to fit closely around the lower end of a pusher member to aid in guiding said lead member in a plumb direction, said lower end of the plow point means being slightly less in cross-section than the cross-sectional area of said container bottom opening; c. an elongated pusher means having its lower end closely fitted with said socket portion of said plow point means so that an impact force applied to said pusher means will be transferred to said plow point means for effecting penetration of the soil supporting surface to cause a vertically continuous column bore to be formed in said soil, said pusher means being of cross sectional area substantially less than that of said lower end of the plow point means; and, d. said container including scale means for progressively indicating the amount of column forming material transferred into a column being formed and said pusher means including a graduated scale to indicate depth of plow point penetration and in conjunction with the scale means on the container to indicate the amount of material transferred into said column bore in response to predetermined increments of movement of said plow point means, whereby it may be determined whether a uniform amount of material necessary to fill the theoretical bore size is being induced into the bore. 